U.S. patent number 7,252,549 [Application Number 11/477,885] was granted by the patent office on 2007-08-07 for connector, receptacle for connector and plug for connector.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Mitsumi Electric Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Takashi Kawasaki, Atsushi Nishio, Masashi Ouchi, Takahiro Shimoyama.
United States Patent |
7,252,549 |
Nishio , et al. |
August 7, 2007 |
Connector, receptacle for connector and plug for connector
Abstract
A connector includes a receptacle 1 to be mounted on a substrate
11 and a plug 5 adapted to be connected to the receptacle 1. The
receptacle 1 has a shield case 2 provided with connection terminals
31 therein, and the plug 5 has a shield case 6 provided with
connection terminals 71 therein. The shield case 6 of the plug 5 is
adapted to be inserted into the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1
when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1, at which the
connection terminals 71 of the plug 5 are electrically connected to
the connection terminals 31 of the receptacle 1. A tongue portion
23 is provided on a bottom surface of the shield case 2 of the
receptacle 1 and a recess 63 is formed on a bottom surface 61 of
the shield case 6 of the plug 5 so that the tongue portion 23 is
fitted into the recess 63 when the plug 5 is connected to the
receptacle 1, which serve as an erroneous insertion preventing and
guiding mechanism.
Inventors: |
Nishio; Atsushi (Tokyo,
JP), Kawasaki; Takashi (Tokyo, JP), Ouchi;
Masashi (Tokyo, JP), Shimoyama; Takahiro (Tokyo,
JP) |
Assignee: |
Mitsumi Electric Co., Ltd.
(Yamagata, JP)
|
Family
ID: |
37817764 |
Appl.
No.: |
11/477,885 |
Filed: |
June 29, 2006 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20070054553 A1 |
Mar 8, 2007 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Sep 2, 2005 [JP] |
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2005-255588 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
439/607.55;
439/680; 439/677 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01R
13/64 (20130101); H01R 12/725 (20130101); H01R
13/6582 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
H01R
13/648 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;439/607,680,677 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Ta; Tho D.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Patents+TMS, P.C.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A connector comprising: a receptacle mounted on a substrate
wherein the receptacle has a shield case of a generally angulate
tubular shape having a bottom surface that faces the substrate when
the receptacle is mounted thereon wherein the shield case of the
receptacle has connection terminals therein; a plug connected to
the receptacle wherein the plug has a shield case of a generally
angulate tubular shape having a bottom surface wherein the shield
case of the plug has connection terminals therein wherein the
shield case of the plug is configured so that the shield case of
the plug is inserted into the shield case of the receptacle when
the plug is connected to the receptacle wherein the connection
terminals of the plug are electrically connected to the connection
terminals of the receptacle; and erroneous insertion preventing and
guiding means provided in the bottom surface of the shield case of
the receptacle and the bottom surface of the shield case of the
plug for preventing any occurrence of erroneous insertion
therebetween when the plug is connected to the receptacle while
properly guiding the shield case of the plug into the shield case
of the receptacle wherein the erroneous insertion preventing and
guiding means has at least one tongue portion formed in one of the
bottom surfaces of the shield case of the receptacle and the shield
case of the plug and a recess corresponding to the tongue portion
and formed in the other bottom surface of the shield case of the
receptacle or the shield case of the plug wherein the tongue
portion is fitted into the recess when the plug is connected to the
receptacle wherein the tongue portion is formed in the bottom
surface of the shield case of the receptacle and the recess is
formed in the bottom surface of the shield case of the plug wherein
the tongue portion is formed into a generally rectangular shape by
cutting away left and right sides of the bottom surface of the
shield case of the receptacle substantially up to a middle part
thereof along a plug insertion direction.
2. A connector comprising: a receptacle mounted on a substrate
wherein the receptacle has a shield case of a generally angulate
tubular shape having a bottom surface that faces the substrate when
the receptacle is mounted thereon wherein the shield case of the
receptacle has connection terminals therein; a plug connected to
the receptacle wherein the plug has a shield case of a generally
angulate tubular shape having a bottom surface wherein the shield
case of the plug has connection terminals therein wherein the
shield case of the plug is configured so that the shield case of
the plug is inserted into the shield case of the receptacle when
the plug is connected to the receptacle wherein the connection
terminals of the plug are electrically connected to the connection
terminals of the receptacle; and erroneous insertion preventing and
guiding means provided in the bottom surface of the shield case of
the receptacle and the bottom surface of the shield case of the
plug for preventing any occurrence of erroneous insertion
therebetween when the plug is connected to the receptacle while
properly guiding the shield case of the plug into the shield case
of the receptacle wherein the erroneous insertion preventing and
guiding means has at least one tongue portion formed in one of the
bottom surfaces of the shield case of the receptacle and the shield
case of the plug and a recess corresponding to the tongue portion
and formed in the other bottom surface of the shield case of the
receptacle or the shield case of the plug wherein the tongue
portion is fitted into the recess when the plug is connected to the
receptacle wherein the tongue portion is formed in the bottom
surface of the shield case of the receptacle and the recess is
formed in the bottom surface of the shield case of the plug wherein
the tongue portion is formed into a generally trapezoidal shape by
cutting away left and right sides of the bottom surface of the
shield case of the receptacle substantially up to a middle part
thereof along a plug insertion direction.
3. A connector comprising: a receptacle mounted on a substrate
wherein the receptacle has a shield case of a generally angulate
tubular shape having a bottom surface facing the substrate when the
receptacle is mounted thereon wherein the shield case of the
receptacle has connection terminals therein; a plug connected to
the receptacle wherein the plug has a shield case of a generally
angulate tubular shape having a bottom surface wherein the shield
case of the plug has connection terminals therein wherein the
shield case of the plug is configured so that the shield case of
the plug is inserted into the shield case of the receptacle when
the plug is connected to the receptacle wherein the connection
terminals of the plug are electrically connected to the connection
terminals of the receptacle wherein the shield case of the
receptacle and the shield case of the plug are formed of a metal
plate that forms the bottom surface of the shield case of the
receptacle and has a thickness greater than a thickness of the
metal plate forming the bottom surface of the shield case of the
plug such that a gap is created between the bottom surface of the
plug and a top surface of the substrate when the plug is connected
to the receptacle under a condition that the receptacle is mounted
on the substrate; and erroneous insertion preventing and guiding
means in the bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle
and the bottom surface of the shield case of the plug for
preventing any occurrence of erroneous insertion therebetween when
the plug is connected to the receptacle while properly guiding the
shield case of the plug into the shield case of the receptacle.
Description
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application
No. 2005-255588 filed Sep. 2, 2005.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector, a receptacle for
connector and a plug for connector, and more specifically relates
to a connector comprised of a receptacle and a plug, the receptacle
for use in the connector and the plug for use in the connector.
2. Description of the Background Art
In general, a small-sized connector comprised of a receptacle and a
plug is provided with an erroneous insertion preventing means for
preventing the plug from being inserted into the receptacle in an
improper orientation, e.g., in an inverted orientation
(Hereinbelow, referred to as "erroneous insertion").
As an example of such an erroneous insertion preventing means,
there is known a method in which a pair of erroneous insertion
preventing protrusions are formed below a plug insertion opening of
a shield case of the receptacle.
Other known methods include a method in which the top, bottom, left
and right portions of a plug shield case and a receptacle shield
case are formed asymmetrically, and a method in which the upper
corner portions of a plug shield case and the upper corner portions
of a receptacle shield case are formed into "C"-shaped surfaces as
is the case in a mini-USB connector.
However, the methods mentioned above in turn involve such problems
as follows. Namely, in the method in which the erroneous insertion
preventing protrusions are provided below the plug insertion
opening, the width or height of the receptacle is unavoidably
increased in proportion to the size of each protrusion, thus
leading to a problem in that it is difficult to further reduce the
size of the connector.
Further, in the method in which the upper corner portions of the
receptacle shield case and the plug shield case are respectively
formed so as to have the "C"-shaped surfaces, no measure is taken
to sufficiently cope with the situation that the plug is slantingly
inserted into the receptacle. Another problem is that, when the
connector is of a smaller size, the plug may sometimes be forcibly
inserted into the receptacle in an inverted orientation, despite
the provision of such "C"-shaped surfaces.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the above problems involved in the prior art connectors,
it is an object of the present invention to provide a connector
that can reliably prevent a plug from being erroneously or
slantingly inserted into a receptacle, even if the connector is of
a smaller size.
In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present
invention is directed to a connector which includes a receptacle to
be mounted on a substrate and a plug adapted to be connected to the
receptacle. The receptacle includes a shield case of a generally
angulate tubular shape having a bottom surface which is adapted to
face the substrate when the receptacle is mounted thereon, and the
shield case of the receptacle is provided with connection terminals
therein. The plug includes a shield case of a generally angulate
tubular shape having a bottom surface, and the shield case of the
plug is also provided with connection terminals therein. The shield
case of the plug is configured so that the shield case of the plug
is inserted into the shield case of the receptacle when the plug is
connected to the receptacle, at which the connection terminals of
the plug are adapted to be electrically connected to the connection
terminals of the receptacle. The connector further includes
erroneous insertion preventing and guiding means provided in the
bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle and the bottom
surface of the shield case of the plug for preventing any
occurrence of erroneous insertion therebetween when the plug is
connected to the receptacle while properly guiding the shield case
of the plug into the shield case of the receptacle.
According to the connector of the present invention described
above, the erroneous insertion preventing and guiding means is
provided in the bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle
and the bottom surface of the shield case of the plug, the
erroneous insertion preventing means prevents any occurrence of
erroneous insertion when the plug is connected to the receptacle
while properly guiding the shield case of the plug into the shield
case of the receptacle. Accordingly, there is no need to form
erroneous insertion preventing protrusions at below an insertion
opening of the receptacle from which the plug is inserted into the
shield case of the receptacle or at other locations like the prior
art described above. This eliminates the need to provide a separate
space for forming the erroneous insertion preventing protrusions.
The space for providing the erroneous insertion preventing and
guiding means can be provided in the bottom surfaces of the shield
case of the receptacle and the shield case of the plug, which helps
to make the receptacle (connector) to have lower height and smaller
size.
In the connector of the present invention, it is preferred that the
erroneous insertion preventing and guiding means includes at least
one tongue portion formed in one of the bottom surfaces of the
shield case of the receptacle and the shield case of the plug and a
recess corresponding to the tongue portion and formed on the other
bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle or the shield
case of the plug, the tongue portion is fitted into the recess when
the plug is connected to the receptacle.
According to the connector of the present invention described
above, the tongue portion interferes with the portions other than
the recess at the time when erroneous insertion happens, thus
effectively preventing any erroneous insertion in an improper
orientation. Furthermore, since the tongue portion is properly
guided by the recess when the plug is connected to the receptacle,
the plug is prevented from being slantingly inserted into the
receptacle.
Further, in the connector of the present invention, it is also
preferred that the tongue portion is formed in the bottom surface
of the shield case of the receptacle and the recess is formed in
the bottom surface of the shield case of the plug.
According to the connector of the present invention described
above, the tongue portion is prevented from bending by the presence
of the substrate and therefore the receptacle is kept from any
deformation which would otherwise be caused by the erroneous
insertion.
Further, in the connector of the present invention, it is also
preferred that the tongue portion is formed into a generally
rectangular shape by cutting away left and right sides of the
bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle substantially
up to a middle part thereof along a plug insertion direction.
According to the connector of the present invention described
above, it is possible to form the tongue portion constituting a
part of the erroneous insertion preventing and guiding means by
using the bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle.
Therefore, it is possible to avoid any increase in the height and
size of the receptacle that would otherwise be caused by the
provision of the erroneous insertion preventing means. This makes
it possible to miniaturize the size and height of the
connector.
Furthermore, in the connector of the present invention, it is also
preferred that the tongue portion is formed into a generally
trapezoidal shape by cutting away left and right sides of the
bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle substantially
up to a middle part thereof along a plug insertion direction. This
enables the tongue portion of the receptacle to be readily guided
by and inserted into the recess of the plug.
In the connector of the present invention, it is preferred that the
shield case of the receptacle and the shield case of the plug are
formed of a metal plate and the metal plate forming the bottom
surface of the shield case of the receptacle has a thickness
greater than a thickness of the metal plate forming the bottom
surface of the shield case of the plug such that a gap can be
created between the bottom surface of the plug and a top surface of
the substrate, when the plug is connected to the receptacle under a
condition that the receptacle is mounted on the substrate. This
enables the plug to be connected to the receptacle with no
interference with the substrate.
Moreover, it is also preferred that an elastic locking piece is
formed on a top surface of the shield case of the receptacle and a
recess is formed on a top surface of the shield case of the plug,
the elastic locking piece adapted to engage with the recess formed
on the top surface of the shield case of the plug when the plug is
connected to the receptacle. This prevents the plug from being
inadvertently removed from the receptacle.
Another aspect of the present invention is directed to a receptacle
for connector which is to be mounted on a substrate when in use and
to which a plug having a shield case of a generally angulate
tubular shape is adapted to be connected. The shield case of the
plug is provided with connection terminals therein and has a bottom
surface. The receptacle includes a shield case of a generally
angulate tubular shape having a bottom surface which is adapted to
face the substrate when the receptacle is mounted thereon, and the
shield case of the receptacle is provided with connection terminals
therein. The shield case of the receptacle is configured so that
the shield case of the plug is inserted into the shield case of the
receptacle when the plug is connected to the receptacle, at which
the connection terminals of the plug are electrically connected to
the connection terminals of the receptacle. Further, a tongue
portion is formed in the bottom surface of the shield case of the
receptacle and a recess is formed in the bottom surface of the
shield case of the plug so that the tongue portion of the shield
case of the receptacle is fitted into the recess of the shield case
of the plug when the plug is connected to the receptacle.
Further, another aspect of the present invention is directed to a
plug for connector which is to be connected to a receptacle having
a shield case of a generally angulate tubular shape. The receptacle
is adapted to be mounted on a substrate when in use, and the shield
case of the receptacle is provided with connection terminals
therein and having a bottom surface which is adapted to face the
substrate when the receptacle is mounted on the substrate. The plug
includes a shield case of a generally angulate tubular shape having
a bottom surface, and the shield case of the receptacle is provided
with connection terminals therein. The shield case of the plug is
configured so that the shield case of the plug is inserted into the
shield case of the receptacle when the plug is connected to the
receptacle, at which the connection terminals of the plug are
electrically connected to the connection terminals of the
receptacle. Further, a recess is formed in the bottom surface of
the shield case of the plug and a tongue portion is formed in the
bottom surface of the shield case of the receptacle so that the
tongue portion of the shield case of the receptacle is fitted into
the recess of the shield case of the plug when the plug is
connected to the receptacle.
These and other objects, structures and results of the present
invention will be apparent more clearly when the following detailed
description of the preferred embodiments is considered taken in
conjunction with the appended drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a receptacle 1 employed
in a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention,
with a substrate 11 removed for clarity.
FIG. 2 is a front view of the receptacle 1 shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a top view of the receptacle 1 shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the receptacle 1 shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the receptacle 1 shown
in FIG. 1.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a plug 5 employed in a
connector according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a front view of the plug 5 shown in FIG. 6.
FIG. 8 is a side view of the plug 5 shown in FIG. 6.
FIG. 9 is a top view of the plug 5 shown in FIG. 6.
FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the plug 5 shown in FIG. 6.
FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state immediately prior to
the plug 5 shown in FIG. 6 being inserted into the receptacle 1
illustrated in FIG. 1, with a substrate 11 removed for clarity.
FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a state that the plug 5 shown
in FIG. 6 has been connected to the receptacle 1 illustrated in
FIG. 1, with a substrate 11 removed for clarity.
FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a receptacle 1 employed
in a connector according to another embodiment of the present
invention, with a substrate 11 removed for clarity.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a connector according to the
present invention will be described with reference to the
accompanying drawings.
As shown in the figures, the connector of this embodiment includes
a receptacle 1 to be mounted on a substrate 11 and a plug 5 adapted
to be connected to the receptacle 1. The receptacle 1 has a shield
case 2 of a generally angulate tubular shape, and the shield case 2
is provided with a dozen of connection terminals 31 therein. The
plug 5 has a shield case 6 of a generally angulate tubular shape,
and the shield case 6 is provided with a dozen of connection
terminals 71 therein. The shield case 6 is adapted to be inserted
in the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1. When the shield case 6 of
the plug 5 is inserted into the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1
(that is, when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1), the
connection terminals 71 of the plug 5 are electrically connected to
the connection terminals 31 of the receptacle 1. One of the
features of this connector resides in the structure where a tongue
portion 23 is provided in a bottom surface (bottom wall) 21, that
is, the surface of the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1 which
faces the substrate 11 when the receptacle 1 is mounted on the
substrate 11, and a recess 63 is formed in a bottom surface (bottom
wall) 61 of the shield case 6 of the plug 5. The tongue portion 23
and the recess 63 are configured so that they are mutually fitted
together when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1 and thus
serve as an erroneous insertion preventing and guiding means of the
present invention. Referring first to FIGS. 1 through 5, a
description will be made to the receptacle 1 employed in the
connector of this embodiment.
The receptacle 1 includes the shield case 2 of a generally angulate
tubular shape, a connection terminal portion 3 provided inside the
shield case 2 and a housing 4 disposed inside the shield case 2. As
shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the receptacle 1 is adapted to be mounted
on a substrate 11.
The shield case 2 is produced by blanking a sheet of electrically
conductive metal plate into a predetermined shape and then bending
the same into a generally angulate tubular shape. The shield case 2
has a bottom surface 21 (bottom wall) which is adapted to face the
substrate 11 when the receptacle 1 is mounted on the substrate 11
(see FIG. 4), a top surface 26 lying at the opposite side from the
bottom surface 21, and side surfaces 28 disposed between the bottom
surface 21 and the top surface 26.
As shown in FIG. 4, the left and right sides of the bottom surface
21 are cut away from the front end thereof to around the middle
part along a plug insertion direction, thereby forming two cutout
portions 24. This leaves a generally rectangular tongue portion 23
between the two cutout portions 24. The tongue portion 23 has a tip
end portion 23a positioned at a receptacle opening 1a, a base end
portion 23b lying adjacent to a rear surface portion 1b of the
receptacle 1 and lateral side portions 23c extending along the both
sides of the tongue portion 23. As will be described later, at the
time when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1, the tongue
portion 23 is inserted or fitted into the recess 63 formed in the
bottom surface 61 of the shield case 6 of the plug 5. Under this
condition, the tip end portion 23a, the base end portion 23b and
the lateral side portions 23c of the tongue portion 23 make contact
with a rear end portion 63a, a front opening portion 63b and
lateral side portions 63c of the recess 63, respectively.
The metal plate forming the bottom surface 21 of the shield case 2
has a thickness (designated by reference character "A" in FIG. 2)
greater than the thickness (designated by reference character "B"
in FIG. 7) of the metal plate which forms the bottom surface 61 of
the shield case 6 of the plug 5 described later. Such a difference
in the plate thickness creates a small gap between the bottom
surface 61 of the plug 5 and the top surface of the substrate 11,
when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1 in a state that
the latter is mounted on the substrate 11. This enables the plug 5
to be connected to the receptacle 1 without interference with the
substrate 11.
Referring back to FIG. 1, an elastic locking piece 27 is formed
substantially at the center of the top surface 26 of the shield
case 2. The elastic locking piece 27 may be formed by notching or
cutting out the top surface 26. As described below, when the plug 5
is connected to the receptacle 1 as described later, the elastic
locking piece 27 engages with a recess 67 formed on a top surface
66 of the shield case 6 of the plug 5 (see FIG. 6).
As illustrated in FIG. 1, each of the side surfaces 28 of the
shield case 2 of the receptacle 1 has a "c"-shaped surface 28a
formed at the respective top corner parts thereof and a pair of
engagement lugs 29 provided at the respective lower end parts
thereof. The "c"-shaped surface 28a has a shape corresponding to
the shape of a "c"-shaped surface 68a formed on each of the side
surfaces 68 of the shield case 6 of the plug 5 as described later
(see FIG. 7).
The engagement lugs 29 are portions for securing the receptacle 1
to the substrate 11. Namely, when the receptacle 1 is mounted on
the substrate 11 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the engagement lugs 29
are fitted into the mounting holes 11a of the substrate 11 and then
soldered to the back side of the substrate 11.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the connection terminal portion 3
includes the connection terminals 31, a plate-shaped terminal
support portion 32 for supporting the connection terminals 31 and a
plurality of rear connection terminals 33. Each of the connection
terminals 31 and each of the rear connection terminals 33 are
integrally formed through the use of a single piece of electrically
conductive metal and are arranged in such a manner that they extend
through the housing 4, as illustrated in FIG. 5. Further, the
connection terminals 31 are arranged on the underside of the
terminal support portion 32 so that, when the plug 5 is connected
to the receptacle 1, they will be brought into contact with the
corresponding connection terminals 71 of a connection terminal
portion 7 of the plug 5 (which will be described later in detail)
to make electrical connection therebetween. The rear connection
terminals 33 are soldered to the connection points (not shown) of
the substrate 11 (see FIG. 5).
The housing 4 shown in FIG. 5 is a molding member made of a resin
having insulation property, and is integrally molded with the
connection terminal support portion 32. The housing 4 having such a
structure is held by the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1.
Next, referring to FIGS. 6 through 10, a description will be made
with regard to the plug 5 employed in the connector of this
embodiment. The plug 5 includes a shield case 5 of a generally
angulate tubular shape, a connection terminal portion 7 provided
inside the shield case 6 and a plug body 51 provided on the base
portion of the shield case 2. Further, the plug 5 is connected to a
code 52 as can be seen in FIG. 6.
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the shield case 6 is produced by forming
an electrically conductive metal plate into a generally angulate
tubular shape. The shield case 6 has the bottom surface (bottom
wall) 61 (see FIG. 7) corresponding to the bottom surface 21 of the
shield case 2 of the receptacle 1, a top surface 66 positioned at
the opposite side from the bottom surface 61, and side surfaces 68
disposed between the bottom surface 61 and the top surface 66.
As shown in FIG. 10, the recess 63 is formed at the center of the
bottom surface 61 and is adapted to receive the tongue portion 23
of the receptacle 1 when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle
1. The recess 63 has an opening portion 63b defined by the base
portion 63a and the lateral side portions 63c. The opening portion
63b has substantially the same shape as the tongue portion 23 of
the receptacle 1. As described above, the base portion 63a, the
opening portion 63b and the lateral side portions 63c of the recess
63 make contact with the tip end portion 23a, the base end portion
23b and the lateral side portions 23c of the tongue portion 23,
respectively, when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1 (see
FIGS. 11 and 12). Further, as described above, the metal plate
forming the bottom surface 61 of the shield case 6 has a thickness
(designated by reference character "B" in FIG. 7) smaller than the
thickness (designated by reference character "A" in FIG. 2) of the
metal plate which forms the bottom surface 21 of the shield case 2
of the receptacle 1. This enables the plug 5 to be connected to the
receptacle 1 without interference with the substrate 11.
Referring to FIG. 9, a recess 67 is formed substantially at the
center of the top surface 66 of the shield case 6. At the time when
the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1, the recess 67 engages
with the elastic locking piece 27 formed on the top surface 26 of
the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1, thereby assuring reliable
connection between the plug 5 and the receptacle 1.
As shown in FIG. 7, each of the side surfaces 68 of the shield case
of 6 of the plug 5 has a "c"-shaped surface 68a formed at the
respective top corner parts thereof. The "c"-shaped surface 68a has
a shape corresponding to the shape of the "c"-shaped surface 28a
formed on each of the side surfaces 28 of the shield case 2 of the
receptacle 1. The connection terminal portion 7 shown in FIG. 7
includes the plurality of connection terminals 71 and a terminal
support portion 72 for supporting the connection terminals 71. The
plurality of connection terminals 71 are connected to individual
wires (not shown) of the cord 52 within the plug body 51.
Hereinbelow, a description will be made with regard to the
operation and advantageous effects provided by the present
embodiment.
In this embodiment, the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1 by
inserting the shield case 6 of the plug 5 into the shield case 2 of
the receptacle 1. In the process of such insertion, the tongue
portion 23 serving as an erroneous insertion preventing and guiding
means is guided by and fitted into the recess 63. This ensures that
the shield case 6 of the plug 5 is thoroughly and reliably inserted
into the shield case 2 of the receptacle 1. Furthermore, due to the
fact that the tongue portion 23 is guided by the recess 63, the
plug 5 is prevented from being slantingly or erroneously inserted
into the receptacle 1. In the meantime, if an erroneous insertion
is attempted by invertedly orienting the bottom surface 61 of the
plug 5 to face the top surface 26 of the receptacle 1, the top end
portion 66a (see FIGS. 6 and 7) of the shield case 6 of the plug 5
will interfere with the tip end portion 23a of the tongue portion
23, thus making it impossible to insert the plug 5 into the
receptacle 1. This ensures that the plug 5 is prevented from being
erroneously inserted into the receptacle 1 in an inverted
orientation.
Moreover, provision of the "C"-shaped surfaces 28a and 68a in the
receptacle 1 and the plug 5 of the present embodiment can more
effectively prevent occurrence of the erroneous insertion in the
inverted orientation. In this regard, it is noted that, although
the "C"-shaped surfaces 28a and 68a are employed in the present
embodiment, they are not essential to the present invention and
therefore may be eliminated.
The tongue portion 23 is formed on the bottom surface 21 of the
shield case 2 of the receptacle 1 and therefore the lower surface
of the tongue portion 23 is supported by the substrate 11 even if
the plug 5 is erroneously inserted in an inverted orientation (see
FIG. 2). This prevents the tongue portion 23 from being bent
downwardly (in the direction getting closer to the substrate 11 as
indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1). Therefore, even when the plug 5
is erroneously inserted in an inverted orientation with a
significantly great force, the tongue portion 23 is prevented from
bending and the receptacle 1 is kept from any deformation which
would otherwise be caused by the erroneous insertion.
The tongue portion 23 is formed into a generally rectangular shape
by cutting away the bottom surface 21 of the shield case 2 of the
receptacle 1. This makes it unnecessary for the receptacle 1 to
have a separate space for forming the erroneous insertion
preventing protrusions like the prior art, which helps to make the
receptacle 1 to have lower height and smaller size.
Further, as described above, the metal plate forming the bottom
surface 21 of the shield case 2 has a thickness greater than the
thickness of the metal plate which forms a bottom surface 61 of the
shield case 6 of the plug 5 and therefore a small gap is created
between the bottom surface 61 of the plug 5 and the top surface of
the substrate 11 when the plug 5 is connected to the receptacle 1.
This makes it possible to connect the plug 5 to the receptacle 1
without interference with the substrate 11.
Once the plug 5 is correctly inserted into the receptacle 1, the
elastic locking piece 27 of the receptacle 1 engages with the
recess 67 formed on the top surface 66 of the plug 5. This prevents
the plug 5 from being removed from the receptacle 1
inadvertently.
In the embodiment described above, the receptacle 1 is designed to
have the tongue portion 23 and the plug 5 is configured to have the
recess 63. However, alternatively, the plug may have a tongue
portion and the receptacle may have a recess corresponding to the
tongue portion of the plug. Further, although the connector of the
foregoing embodiment is provided with a single tongue portion 23
and a single recess 63, the connector may have a plurality of
tongue portions and a plurality of recesses.
Further, although the tongue portion 23 of the foregoing embodiment
is formed into a generally rectangular shape, no restriction is
imposed on the shape of the tongue portion 23 as far as it allows
the receptacle 1 and the plug 5 to be connected together. FIG. 13
illustrates a receptacle 1 according to another embodiment of the
present invention wherein the receptacle 1 has a tongue portion 23
formed into a generally trapezoidal shape for easier insertion into
the recess of the plug 5. In this embodiment, it is preferred that
the plug 5 has a trapezoidal recess corresponding to the shape of
the tongue portion 23.
Still further, according to the receptacle 1 of the other
embodiment shown in FIG. 13, the shield case 2 has engagement lugs
29 extending laterally outwardly from the respective side surfaces
28 in a horizontal direction. This type of engagement lugs 29 is in
preparation for the surface mounting of the receptacle 1 on the
substrate 11.
Finally, it should be understood that the present invention is not
limited to the preferred embodiments described hereinabove and,
needless to say, a variety of modifications or variations may be
made without departing from the scope of the invention defined in
the following claims.
Further, it is also to be understood that the present disclosure
relates to subject matter contained in Japanese Patent Application
No. 2005-255588 (filed on Sep. 2, 2005) which is expressly
incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
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